The present invention relates generally to communication between command and control (C&C) units, more particularly to digital data exchange over a data link between C&C units, of visual data acquired by airborne vehicles, which are controlled by the C&C units.
The present invention also relates to Israeli Patent No. 111069 to Sroka et al. incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein.
As will become apparent upon reading the detailed description of the present invention, the present invention relies on topics of digital mapping, image registration and visual display of data link communication, all of which are prior art, partly described in the following patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,160,497 to Clark describes a display and methodology for visually rendering digital data link communications between aircraft and other aircraft or ground units.
The display may reside in the aircraft cockpit visually displaying the digital data link communications. The display may also be used at a ground location, such as at an air traffic control unit. Visually displaying the digital data link communications allows a pilot to obtain situational awareness by monitoring the digital communications between aircraft, and may be used in combination with or replace monitoring the voice communications being exchanged over the voice channels.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,160 to Beckwith, Jr., et al. describes a system for generating a real time perspective view of the terrain lying along an aircraft's flight path, accessing terrain data stored in a digital map generator and converting the data into a perspective representation of the terrain on the face of a suitable display such as a cockpit instrument panel CRT.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,936,553 to Kabel describes a navigation device and method for displaying navigation information in a visual perspective view.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,119,976 to Rogers describes a shoulder launched unmanned reconnaissance system for providing overhead visual surveillance of remote targets. That invention includes a reconnaissance air vehicle, which may be launched from a portable launcher.
The aforementioned Israeli Patent No. 111069 to Sroka, et al. describes a method and system for marking object images acquired at high zooming by an airborne imaging device, on a reference map having a wide field of view of the scene.
None of the prior art references addresses a situation wherein a visual status of an object whose image is acquired by one C&C unit is automatically updated in real time in all the C&C units which are connected to this C&C unit.
Such updated information will be useful in keeping the situational awareness of the operators of the informed C&C units and will be helpful to them in reassigning new objects for airborne vehicles under their control.
As an example, consider a fleet of aircraft carriers wherein each ship controls its own squadron of aircraft. Each aircraft carrier is thus an autonomous command and control unit with respect to its aircraft. Besides, assume that some of the ships supervise collectively the same geographical terrain territory, thus they use maps or aerial photographs in which the same targets may appear.
Assume also that whenever an aircraft under the C&C of one of the ships engages a specific target, the aircraft also transmits back to its ship (only) images of scenes, which includes the engaged target.
In such a case it should be beneficial that the rest of the aircraft carriers should be aware of the change of the status of the engaged target and thus avoid sending (or alternatively distracting, if they are already in air) their aircraft from this specific target.
In the past, operators of the individual control units were able upon listening to verbal communication to mark by hand or electronically, (e.g. by using a mouse) objects on maps or aerial photographs.
With the advent of “speechless” digital data link communications between control units, the operator of a control unit no longer receives the necessary information permitting him to be aware of changes in status of objects which are reported by other control units. Furthermore even if he has been exposed to this vast quantity of verbal information, he would not be able to handle it.
The present invention fills this gap and provides other related advantages.